


i will bend every light in this city (and make sure they're shining on you)

by fallenhurricane



Series: Malec Playlist [7]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Long-Distance Relationship, Long-Term Relationship(s), M/M, Mundane Alec Lightwood, Mundane Magnus Bane, i really need to work on my pacing in stories oops
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:42:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24496642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallenhurricane/pseuds/fallenhurricane
Summary: It’s been four months since Alec and Magnus have been in the same room, or even the same state. Four months since winter break -- since they’d gone ice skating at Bryant Park and made hot chocolate in Magnus’s apartment. Since they’d exchanged gifts and kisses and cuddled on the couch for hours.Alec’s mind often wanders back to the first time he and Magnus said goodbye, nearly two years ago now, before he boarded the plane. He thinks about how Magnus had clutched his hand tightly, how he had used the lapels of Magnus’s shirt to tug him in for a kiss, how they had embraced for far longer than normal.Alec’s mind often wanders to Magnus.
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Series: Malec Playlist [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1757935
Comments: 6
Kudos: 48





	i will bend every light in this city (and make sure they're shining on you)

**Author's Note:**

> I was emotional about A Great Big World and this happened and I do apologize.

Don't you know that I spend all my nights  
Counting backwards the days 'til I'm home?  
-A Great Big World, "Already Home"

The light filters in through the bedroom window, lighting up the dust mites floating through the air and landing on the bed sheets. Alec grunts, rolling over and smushing his face into his pillow. He just needs five more minutes and then maybe he’ll be able to survive the day. Just five more.

His phone rings.

“Crazy in Love” starts playing, and he can’t help but smile as he fumbles around on the bed next to him to find his phone. He swipes it to talk without even looking at the caller ID. “Hey, babe.” His voice is thick with sleep, but he can’t be mad at the early phone call. 

Magnus’s laugh rings through, a bit tinny and distant, but as lovely as ever. “Did I wake you?” 

“No.” Magnus laughs again, and Alec’s smile grows as he rolls onto his back, flinging his free hand over his face to block out the sun. “Okay. Maybe.”

“Day off today?”

“Of course not. You?”

Magnus sighs. “No,” he says. “I just met with my advisor and I have an appointment with one of my professors this afternoon, plus two classes tonight.” The frown in his voice makes Alec’s heart ache. 

“I’m sorry,” Alec says as he sits up. He stretches, popping his back, and swings his legs off the bed. “I wish I could…” He trails off. It’s not worth saying; Magnus knows and it hurts his chest every time the words leave his mouth. 

“Me too, Alexander.” 

*

It’s been four months since Alec and Magnus have been in the same room, or even the same state. Four months since winter break -- since they’d gone ice skating at Bryant Park and made hot chocolate in Magnus’s apartment. Since they’d exchanged gifts and kisses and cuddled on the couch for hours. 

They knew the likelihood of this happening, of the perils of long-distance challenging them, was high when they realized in their junior year of college and their second year of dating that they both wanted to pursue graduate school. But even they couldn’t have guessed how hard it would actually be. 

Columbia has one of the top history preservation graduate programs in the country, and it’s in their home city, so Magnus remains in New York, riding the subway from his shared apartment to class to work and back again. Alec finds himself in Berkeley, California, studying to get his masters in Economics. He loves the weather, being able to study on the beach, and having DisneyLand so close by. He hates being 2,500 miles from the love of his life. 

Alec’s mind often wanders back to the first time he and Magnus said goodbye, nearly two years ago now, before he boarded the plane. He thinks about how Magnus had clutched his hand tightly, how he had used the lapels of Magnus’s shirt to tug him in for a kiss, how they had embraced for far longer than normal. 

Alec’s mind often wanders to Magnus.

*

It’s a stupid fight. 

Alec forgets to text Magnus on a Tuesday afternoon before heading onto campus to spend the day with classmates studying for a final exam. Magnus forgets that Alec has an exam coming up. 

Tuesday night is date night, for them. The only night of the week that each of them is consistently free from internships, class, the burden of papers and projects. They usually video chat over dinner, screenshare a movie, spend the night staring into each other’s faces as well as they can so far apart. 

But this Tuesday night, Alec doesn’t answer his phone.

*

“Magnus, I  _ told  _ you I have an exam--” 

“I forgot, okay? But even so you never said that you were going to be out all day.”   
  
“I was at the library!” Alec tosses his free hand in the air, the other holding his phone to his ear. He hates,  _ hates _ , arguing with Magnus like this. It’s different when they’re bickering and bantering over the best episode of  _ Doom Patrol  _ or teasing each other for snoring or falling asleep on FaceTime, but actually arguing and hearing the anger and disappointment in Magnus’s voice hurts. And it’s also a bit frustrating. “I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry that I forgot to text you and let you know.” He exhales. “I am.”

Magnus huffs on the other end of the line. Alec can just imagine him pinching his nose between his fingers, his rings sparkling on his polished fingers. God, he misses him. “I’m sorry, too. I know I can get angry, quickly. I just miss you.” His voice is soft, and Alec almost misses the last four words. 

“I miss you, too.” 

At that, Magnus sighs. His voice is uneven when he says, “You’re going to ace that final, you know?” He sniffles a bit, and Alec hears a shuffle, a nose blow.

He smiles sadly.

They keep talking, now that Magnus has forgiven Alec, and Alec has forgiven Magnus, each of them finding each other as well as themselves at fault for a lack of communication. Magnus sounds exhausted -- he’s had a lot of late nights and early mornings lately, he says, trying to get everything he needs to done before his exams and before Alec’s graduation. He wants to finish it all so he can take some time off his internship when Alec flies back to the city. 

“When’s the last time you slept for more than 4 hours, Mags?” Alec asks, taking off his glasses and leaning back on the sofa, legs splayed in front of him. 

His boyfriend lets out a noncommittal noise. 

“Magnus _. _ ”

“Probably like three weeks ago,” Magnus says quickly, the words practically tripping over themselves. 

“ _ Magnus _ .” 

He snorts, but it’s without humor. “I’ve been trying! I just, you know, am busy.” He pauses, and Alec can hear the kettle whistling through the phone. “And I don’t… I don’t sleep as well without you.” 

And that, that Alec understands.

*

Alec grits his teeth as the plane touches down. He’s always hated the feeling of landing; take-off is unpleasant but he much prefers it. He isn’t unhappy for long though, once he looks out the window and sees LaGuardia. 

His exams are finished. He’s all but graduated, and it turns out you don’t actually have to walk in a graduation ceremony to get the degree. 

Now, he’s almost where he belongs. 

*

When Magnus calls “Hang  _ on _ ,” Alec bites back a grin and knocks on the door again. He can hear Magnus approaching quickly from the other side. “Oh for fuck’s sake, I sa-”

And his words are cut off by a gasp as he throws himself at Alec.

“Alexander!” Magnus’s voice is both loud and quiet at the same time; he’s speaking softly but Alec can hear the intensity and emotions in his words. They wrap their arms around each other. Magnus buries his head into Alec’s neck, breathing deeply, unevenly. His voice shakes when he says, “What are you doing here? I wasn’t expecting to see you for two more weeks.”

Alec smiles into Magnus’s hair, soaking in his sandalwood shampoo, and tightens his grip on his boyfriend. 

“I’m coming home.”

  
  



End file.
